1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a damper for a bearing and more specifically to a damper that can be used under a wide range of temperatures and vibration loads, and in addition to a damper for a bearing in which the damping characteristics can be adjusted.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
Elastomeric supported and flexible fluid filled dampers are well known in the art of dampers used in bearings. An electrometrically supported bearing like U.S. Pat. No. 4,506,998 issued to Showalter on May 26, 1985 uses a elastomeric pad positioned between the bearing and a casing, the pad providing damping capabilities for the bearing because of the soft material. However, the elastomeric (plastic) material used in the damping pad is limited to low temperature environments that will not melt or degrade the plastic material.
Fluid filled elastomeric dampers are known like that in U.S. Pat. No. 4,257,495 issued to de Brie Perry on Mar. 24, 1981 in which an elastomeric bag filled with a liquid is used to provide the damping capability. However, the plastic bag suffers from the same temperature limitation as described above, in addition to the problem of the liquid leaking out and causing problems with the bearing or its surrounding structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,097,895 issued to Matt on Jul. 16, 1963 shows a bearing suspension that uses a plurality of axial aligned solid or tubular resilient rods to support the bearing. The rods can withstand higher temperature environments than elastomeric materials and do not suffer from potential liquid leakage.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a bearing support that is oil free, is elastomeric free, and can be used in high temperature environments and under large damping forces.